Wrestlemania XXVIII thoughts and predictions

I realize this is a dramatic change in topic from what I usually post, but I thought since the WWE Wrestlemania XXVIII card this year was rather stacked with at least three potentially explosive matches, I would chime in.

And yes, I’m a college graduate, progressive, non-believer who happens to like wrestling. It happens. Without further adieu:

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Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos vs. Divas Champion Beth Phoenix & Eve

There was some kind of altercation on TV between Maria Menounos and Beth Phoenix on “Extra,” in which Beth claimed Maria Menounos didn’t respect the Divas champion. I wasn’t really paying attention. In any case, this is just a filler match to get some star power on the show and get the Divas on the card. One would have thought that since this is WWE’s grandest stage, that they would have booked a title match but not so. Just because the celeb is in Kelly’s corner, I’ll go with them.

Winner:  Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos

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Randy Orton vs. Kane

As Aaron Rift over at NoDQ.com has noted, the WWE just kind of threw this match together at the last minute, and the build up was less than stellar.

Last month, the WWE was giving Kane this big push as a possible contender against John Cena, but Cena pretty well destroyed Kane in an ambulance match, so that took the air out of any potential threat from Kane. Kane said that Cena would eventually “embrace the hate,” but Cena never did, and the storyline fizzled and went nowhere after Kane’s thrashing. Kind of a silly ordeal.

If the WWE wasn’t going to give Kane a win against John Cena, I don’t see any reason for Kane to defeat Randy Orton unless the WWE just wants to pull a swerve, which is possible, but I would bet against it.

Winner: Orton

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Team Teddy vs. Team Johnny

This 12-man is for control of the general managership on both Smackdown and RAW. This match will be a zoo. Teddy Long’s team is the clear underdog, while Team Johnny’s team consists of four WWE or World champions. The late edition of Booker T to Team Teddy was a nice twist, but every time Booker has gotten into the ring as of late, it’s only ended with a pinfall and that signature confused look. I could smell a potential upset here too, for no other reason than to screw with fans who think Team Johnny is a shoe-in, but I don’t see it happening. That said, I hope that if Team Johnny wins, they continue to use Teddy in some capacity. He’s too entertaining to take off the air, and well, Johnny is the opposite of entertaining.

Winner: Team Johnny

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Cody Rhodes vs. Big Show for the Intercontinental Championship

Not much to say here. WWE just wanted another big draw on the card, and that would be Big Show. These two were just kind of thrown together as well. The lead up to the match has been OK, and Cody’s presentation highlighting Big Show’s continual slip-ups at Wrestlemania were entertaining. Nonetheless, I don’t see what giving the Big Show the IC title would accomplish, since he’s already been a tag champ, world champ and WWE champ. I don’t believe he’s ever held the IC in the WWE, so that could just add to his accomplishments, I guess, but I’m not convinced that will happen.

Winner: Cody Rhodes

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Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Championship

Sheamus is a rising star in WWE to say the least, and he has had a huge year. That said, Bryan’s character in recent months has been a hoot to watch with the “Yes! Yes! World Heavyweight Champ!” over and over. Still, I think this weekend might be Sheamus’ big Wrestlemania moment.

Winner: Sheamus

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CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho for the WWE Championship

My hope is that this match will be the show stopper. Punk and Jericho have the potential to have the greatest match since Punk and Cena in Chicago from this past summer. By the way, in my opinion, WWE hasn’t had a better match since then. I have a hunch that, after Punk’s fairly long reign as champ (by WWE standards) that Jericho may win the belt, leading to more future matches between Punk and Jericho.

Winner: Chris Jericho

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Undertaker vs. Triple H Hell in a Cell w/ special referee Shawn Michaels

I would be very surprised if HHH won this one. Triple H has lost to Undertaker in two previous Wrestlemanias, but Undertaker is nearing the end of his career, and barring some huge swerve from Vince McMahon, I see Undertaker winning this one again. Granted, I would like to see Triple H win just because I’ve really grown bored of the whole Undertaker shtick, but I don’t see an end to the streak. This also may be one of the few times in the modern WWE era that we may see blood in a match.

 Winner: Undertaker

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The Rock vs. John Cena

This, and the Triple H/Undertaker match, are damn near worth the price of the PPV itself. A year in the making, this match pits Rise Above Hate vs. Boots to Asses. You know, a couple years ago, I never really expected to see The Rock involved in the WWE to the capacity that he is right now. Sure, his primary focus is still on movies, etc., but he’s been on RAW for the past month building up to this match, and that has been unprecedented in about seven years. While I personally would like to see The Rock win (I have never cared much for Cena), my hunch is that Cena is going to win because if The Rock wins, it just makes Cena look like an afterthought or a blip in The Rock’s illustrious career. But if Cena wins, The Rock can always come back at some point and try to get his revenge.

Winner: John Cena